When we first got married, Scott had been working as a waiter. He lived off of his tips and knew other waiters depended on them, too. I, on the other hand, had never worked in the food industry and didn’t think much about tips beyond adding a standard 15% to my bill. The first time I watched Scott give our server an incredibly generous tip, I was stunned. That was “our” money he was handing out!
Scott is still a generous tipper but now we know we need to talk about money, not just assume the other person feels the same way about it we do. We have noticed that gift giving throughout the year can bring real tension to a relationship especially if one person is a Spender and the other a Saver. That’s why financial communication is so important in a relationship.